Year in, year out, sports fans follow records and achievements, racking up headfuls of statistics. But those stats can be a bit dry without an old-fashioned story of goodie versus baddie along the way. In that spirit, we’ve gathered some of the greatest sporting rivalries of all time into one place as a reminder of those times when we all won entertainment gold.
Bjorn Borg v. John McEnroe
The cool Swede versus the hot-tempered American had tennis lovers hooked from the get-go, with crowds at McEnroe’s first-ever Wimbledon final in 1980 already booing him as he came out to play Borg, who was aiming for an Open Era record fifth consecutive Wimbledon title. Despite being the underdog, McEnroe received little sympathy due to his temper tantrums over line calls at the classic British grass tournament where decorum is everything. The encounter is widely regarded as one of the greatest tennis matches of all time, with a fourth-set tie-breaker that lasted 20 minutes. Unable to break Borg’s serve, McEnroe eventually lost, though he got his revenge at the US Open and won Wimbledon the following year.
Ayrton Senna v. Alain Prost
Fans of Formula 1 will clamour for a mention of Brazil’s Ayrton Senna and Frenchman Alain Prost in this list. The two drivers were rivals even as teammates at McLaren. Like Borg and McEnroe, they clashed as personality types that would be styled in the public imagination as emotive opposites: Senna, the intuitive aggressor, versus Prost, the master strategist, known to the French as Le Professeur. They also clashed metal twice at the Japanese Grand Prix in 1989 and 1990 in championship-deciding collisions.
Magic Johnson and Larry Bird
One sports journalist credited this rivalry with saving America’s National Basketball Association, thanks to the number of fans it drew to the sport. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird first sized up to one another as college athletes at Michigan Spartans and the Indiana Sycamores, respectively, in a match said to have achieved the highest-ever television rating for a college basketball game. The duel endured through their respective tenures at the Lakers and the Celtics and beyond, thanks to the basketball cultures the men and their teams represented: LA’s public park “showtime” style of game, versus the Celtics’ “blue-collar pride”.
Dame Ellen McArthur and Francis Joyon
There’s always been a special rivalry between the British and the French in sailing, particularly in solo and round-the-world attempts, in which the French have recently dominated. But British yachtswoman Ellen McArthur caught a whirlwind of attention when she became the youngest person to enter and complete the Vendée Globe solo in 2001, coming second after being diverted to save one of the two Frenchmen tipped to win it. She went on to seize the solo record for sailing non-stop around the world in 2004, beating the time set by French sailor Francis Joyon by 1 day, 8 hours, 35 minutes, 49 seconds.
Mohammed Ali v. George Foreman
Picture a formidable but ageing ex-champion boxer with a drive to regain his world title after being stripped of it for refusing the Vietnam draft. To do so, he must beat a young, devastatingly powerful, Olympic gold-medal-winning, world heavyweight champ. This 1974 clash between Mohammed Ali and George Foreman would become one of the most-watched televised sporting events ever. Attracting a record number of pay-per-view viewers worldwide and grossing an estimated $100 million worldwide, the “rumble in the jungle” continues to inspire entertainment: the 1996 documentary When We Were Kings tells the tale. Afterwards, the two men became friends. In 2012, The Telegraph reported Foreman as saying, “We loved each other. I am not closer to anyone else in this life than I am to Muhammad Ali.”
Martina Navratilova v. Chris Evert
Back to tennis and a rivalry that kept on giving for around 15 years. Portrayed in the 1980s tabloids as a ‘manly’, hard-cheekboned Eastern European, US Czech player Navratilova was juxtaposed with bouffant-haired, all-American sweetheart Chris Evert. The reality was that Evert was no softie either, sometimes described as an ice queen for her steeliness. Still, after losing to Navratilova in three sets in their 61st encounter, allowing her rival to equal her own 55-match winning streak, Evert said, “It was the most devastated I’ve ever felt over a tennis match.” The duo contested 80 matches, 75% of which were finals, between 1973 and 1988, more than any other similar foes. Between them, they held the WTA’s number one spot for almost 12 years between 1975 and 1987.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo
You can’t ignore football, especially in an era inhabited by two players both argued to be the greatest of all time. Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo rarely meet and so, Messi has said, will never be friends, but their fans relentlessly compare statistics, championships and awards to draw a line between them. Together they have dominated world football for years, Ronaldo scoring a record number of international goals and appearances, while Messi has won more Ballon d’Or awards. Soccer heads will compare playing styles, the performative Ronaldo versus the unselfish analytical Messi, and even keep a tally on how many countries they’ve both played and won in. One thing’s for sure, they’ve entertained billions.
Nancy Kerrigan v Tonya Harding
The next rivalry inspired the plot of 2017’s sports mockumentary, I, Tonya, starring Margie Robbie as US ice skater Tonya Harding. Having trained as a toddler and fought her way up the circuit, Harding won the 1989 Skate America competition. She conquered multiple championships and medals and was the first American woman to land a high-stakes triple axel. But that glory came tumbling down when she was associated with a brutal attack on her arch-rival, Nancy Kerrigan. Kerrigan’s knee and thigh were injured so badly she was forced to pull out of the national championship. Harding later accepted a plea bargain and was banned from skating.
Harold Larwood v. Donald Bradman
England v. Australia is one of the world’s oldest cricket rivalries but during the interwar years, an Australian batsman so talented emerged that the England team went to new lengths to beat him. During Australia’s 1930 series-winning season, Donald Bradman set batting records that still stand to this day. England responded by focusing on a bowling technique called “bodyline.” The tactic considered “unsportsmanlike” by some, involves “fast leg bowling” that risks injuring batsmen’s bodies and heads. Using it on Bradman was the brainchild of England captain Douglas Jardine, but it was bowler Harold Larwood, known for his deadly accuracy, who put it to such good effect that it caused unrest among spectators and sparked a diplomatic incident. It also sparked numerous books and a mini-series.
Jonas Vingegaard v. Tadej Pogačar
Bringing us right up to date, this year’s Tour de France saw Slovenia’s Tadej Pogačar wipe the floor with opponents, including Denmark’s Jonas Vingegaard, who had himself won cycling’s most famous road race convincingly the two previous years, keeping Pogačar pinned in second place.
Documented by Netflix’s excellent Tour de France: Unchained, complete with press accusations of cheating, extraordinary comebacks from brutal accidents, and “the world’s greatest climber” versus “the world’s greatest attacker” vibes, Vingegaard – Pogačar is beginning to have the promise of a rivalry for the ages.
